text:
Leelah Alcorn was a trans* teen who commited suicide this weekend. Her parents wouldn't accept her, her friends, either. She was alone with no support, and she killed herself. Her mother then posted on Facebook about how her son had been hit by a truck, implying it was a horrific accident. There is a beautiful hashtag right now, #RealLiveTransAdult to let trans* teens know that there is hope.
Four books about trans* people were nominated in the Cybils YA Nonfiction category this year. 4. That's tied with perennial favorite subjects of the Civil Rights Movement and WWII. I've read them and had reviews written on each of them, picking apart their merits and weaknesses, judging how they may or may not be award worthy. Some obviously compare against others, pitting themselves against each other in my judge-y reader's brain.
You know what? In light of this? Fuck that. I just can't pick them apart when the importance that they even exist is so painfully obvious today. None of them have fundamental flaws, they are all worthy of recommendation, and here they are:
Rethinking Normal: A Memoir in Transition Katie Rain Hill. A college student when she wrote this, Katie tells her story of growing up in a body that didn't feel right--the body of a boy. She tells of her depression and pain and the sheer relief of discovering that transgender was a thing--there was a word for what she was and she wasn't alone. She details the process of coming out and transitioning, the support of her mother and the bullying at school, her advocacy work in Oklahoma, and starting college. A wonderful memoir.
Some Assembly Required: The Not-So-Secret Life of a Transgender Teen Arin Andrews. A high school senior, this is also a memoir of a trans* teen, detailing his life growing up, his depression and his problems at his very conservative Christian school, as well as coming out and transitioning. There is also the real heartbreak of falling in love and a painful breakup after his girlfriend goes to college. This one has a little more medical information than Rethinking Normal
I would read these two as a set, as Arin and Katie are both from the Tulsa area and had some very similar, and some very different experiences. They also used to date and their relationship (and messy breakup) is well-documented in both books so they can be a sort of he said/she said set. Having two (sometimes drastically different) takes on the relationship (including different versions of events and conversations) might be a very successful way to hand sell the set to teens who might not be otherwise interested in reading a trans* memoir.
Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out Susan Kuklin. Kuklin interviewed several trans* teens for her book, editing their conversations down to a narrative in the teen's own voice. In the range of interviews and photographs, Kuklin captures a wide-range of trans* experiences and showcases the diversity within the trans* community. (Also, it's just a plain gorgeous book. I'm usually all about a smaller trim size for YA nonfiction, but yes, this is a book that can justify being larger.)
Transgender Lives: Complex Stories, Complex Voices Kirstin Cronn-Mills. Much like Beyond Magenta, this book focuses on several trans* narratives (although not exclusively young people) and the personal stories of trans* people. Interspersed are chapters to offer background and context--challenges faced by trans* people (covering topics such as legal, health, and social), trans* people in history, introduction to trans* issues, how trans* people and issues are viewed in different cultures, and more. It's hard to tell in the photo, but the cover is a shiny silver, making it a fuzzy mirror.
Books Provided by... my local library, with the exception of Transgender Lives, which was given to me at a publisher dinner with the author at ALA.
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Publishers Weekly today released its list of the 100 Best Books of 2014, for the first time including three translations among its top 10 books, which were written by Hassam Blasim, Elena Ferrante, Marlon James, Lorrie Moore, Joseph O'Neill, Héctor Tobar, Eula Biss, Leslie Jamison, Lawrence Wright, and Emmanuel Carrère.
The three translations include two works of fiction: The Corpse Exhibition by Hassan Blasim, translated from the Arabic by Jonathan Wright (Penguin), and Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Elena Ferrante, translated from the Italian by Ann Goldstein (Europa). Limonov: The Outrageous Adventures of the Radical Soviet Poet Who Became a Bum in New York, a Sensation in France, and a Political Antihero in Russia by Emmanuel Carrère, is nonfiction translated from the French by John Lambert (Farrar, Straus and Giroux).
"Every year when we put together our best books list, we understand why we're in this business," Publishers Weekly review editor Louisa Ermelino said. "It's not just about the best books, but the fact that there are so many good books being published that we have to struggle to choose. We consider the game-changers, the brilliantly written pure entertainment, the clever, the well researched."
Publishers Weekly's selects for the best Young Adults books include: Meg Wolitzer's Belzhar, We Were Liars by E. Lockhart, Beyond Magenta by Susan Kuklin, and Half Bad by Sally Green, among other titles.
Plenty More by Yotam Ottolenghi and Redefining Girly by Melissa Atkins Wardy are two of its best Lifestyle books of 2014.
Marlon James, featured on PW's cover, is author of A Brief History of Seven Killings (Riverhead), a sweeping saga with the attempted assassination of Bob Marley at its center.
Descriptions of Publishers Weekly's "100 Best Books of 2014" are available here.
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
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"Yes! Yes! Yes!"
Usually these international trips last a week, at least that's what I've been told as I had never done one before. But Cynthia and the upper school librarian, Lora Wagner, thought that since I write for children and young adults, and since I'm a writer and photographer, two weeks would be a better fit. Two weeks in Morocco? How could I resist.
And so ….
My two weeks in Rabat were intense and wonderful. Before I left, though, Cynthia emailed a program that freaked me out by its Cecil B. DeMille, Technicolor-coded complexity. There was a two-page spreadsheet, chock-a-block filled with classes, photography workshops, after-school club meetings, auditorium presentations, and a teacher presentation. Class visits were from Pre K to 10th Grade. I immediately came down with a sore throat that lasted until I arrived.
In addition, Cynthia and Lora set up a series of half hour meetings with each teacher before I was to meet their class. Yikes! When would there be time to do all that? Those meetings turned out to be a godsend. They gave me the sense of what the teachers were doing and how my prepared programs could be adapted to reinforce their teaching. Class projects ranged from growing silk worms in a shoebox to scribes in Ancient Egypt. Science, math, and ancient history are not exactly a clear fit with my work as a contemporary nonfiction author. And yet, when we put our heads together we found ways to bridge the gap.
So when Alice Mendoza's kindergarten class went to work on the RAS Storypath Park, the students photographed the tops of the school's palm trees and attached prints to clay models that represented the trunks.
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Dresses! Evening gowns! Shoes! Accessories! What does fashion have to do with YA nonfiction? Read on, my lovelies. For, like Stephen Colbert's segment, The Word, it all comes together in the end. Hint: think the shape of things.
Toward the end of summer I was deep into a new book project. My interviews were transcribed and the chapters pretty close to a final draft. Follow-up questions were written in red. The photographs were cued to match the text. I could see what was missing and knew how to get it. That's what I would call a fine month's work.
This all came together in a lovely rented home in Columbia County, New York, where I had nothing more to do but write, eat delicious food, write, drink chilled wine, write, and watch magnificent sunsets. No TV. Infrequent Internet. We were miles away from newspapers, bills, and arguments over the debt ceiling. Writing does have its perks.
But, and there's always an anxious "but" with writers. My "but" was I couldn't find a shape to my book. It was a burlap bag of information. Where's the beginning, how does it end, and when does that ubiquitous arc we know and love show its beautiful arabesque? My editor, agent, and writer-friends told me not to worry, "It will come, just keep working." I agreed that it would happen, but when? I wanted to see it now. No, not now, yesterday. And so I returned home to the city, home to all-of-the-above mentioned annoyances that keep creativity from a fevered pitch.
Meanwhile, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Alexander McQueen show, Savage Beauty, was winding down. It had been on view for months, and to tell the truth, I had little interest in visiting a crowded fashion show. As the lines at the museum grew longer and longer, the hype louder and louder, I panicked. Am I missing one of the biggest shows in the history of the Met? Then again, do I really want to schlep all the way uptown and stand in line for hours to see clothes? I can do that just as well at Bergdorf's. Friends whose taste I respect insisted, "It's not fashion, it's art!"
"Yeah, yeah."
"Really." Finally, societal pressure got the better of me, and two days before the show closed I gave up my BEST writing hours to see fashion – I mean art.
By 9:30 the lines stretched from the second floor, around the halls, down the
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Bath, The Circus |
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I write a lot about dark subjects for young adults. Many nonfiction writers are drawn to tough themes as a way to go beyond the sound bites, the headlines, and the slogans that make up much of our lives. "An eye for an eye...." "Do the crime, do the time." "Just say 'no"". Life is more complicated than what these and other sayings imply.
There are a range of ways a writer can go beyond slogans. What works for me is writing books based on interviews. I find it fascinating to interview an individual and then write personal accounts from my subject's point of view. From these accounts, along with additional background material, I try to shape a coherent story. The final narratives are usually reviewed by my subjects to be certain there are no mistakes. I've been doing this for years and no one has ever asked me to change an idea or statement so that he will look good. This method can be used with just about any nonfiction, including biography, current events, and even history.
Interviews work particularly well when facing dark subjects, such as boy soldiers, Nazi youths, or teenagers on death row. Nevertheless, dark subjects can be difficult on many levels.
It can be difficult for the people interviewed in the book. They reveal their lives and bare their souls. Ishmael Beah's intimate memoir, A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, is a comparable case in point. Ishmael's personal experience during a very brutal time in his country's history is a clear example of how events affect an individual's life. He is able to describe the brutal war in Sierra Leone in a way that statistics, and even photographs of thousands of nameless dead, do not.
It can be difficult for the writer who has to maintain objectivity. Susan Campbell Bartoletti has talked about making tough decisions while writing her fascinating book, Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow. Susan interviewed people who had participated in the Hitler youth program before and during WW II. They described the idolization, the camaraderie, and the conformity that helped Hitler come to power. Very few analyses beat the power of those testimonies.
It can be difficult for teachers and librarians who have to deal with the politics of a controversial book. They are on the front lines. They must balance a heavy work load, the possible wrath of their community, and the possible loss for simply standing up for the First Amendment. By the way, we authors do what we can to support them.
It can be difficult for the reader who may have never before had to confront the world that they find in a particular book. A few days ago my book, No Choirboy: Murder, Violence, and Teenagers on Death Row, was published. Readers, especially those who have not been exposed to maximum security prisons and Texas's death row, have already told me about strong, emotional reactions that they've experienced while reading the book. Perhaps this is because the stories, written in their voices, are very personal, raw, and current. It's not history. It's happening right now. How about this slogan: "If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem." Now, that's a saying I can get my teeth into. But it's still a slogan.
If dark subjects are so difficult for everyone concerned, why are some us drawn to them? Why do we write about civil rights, human rights, famine, strikes, black lists, torture, and death?
There was something about teenagers on death row that called to me. It demanded to be heard. I absolutely had to write this book.Why? I haven't a clue.
Does anyone out there in cyberspace have the answers?
Susan Kuklin
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Susan Kuklin is an author and photographer of a number of non-fiction books for children and teens. Her most recent book is No Choirboy: Murder, Violence, and Teenagers on Death Row. It's a powerful and provocative (in a good way) book, tackles a subject that might be considered just as edgy as some of her other books, and it's reflective of her usual method of writing. As Susan says on her website, "The modus operandi is a book version of cinema verite; that is, choose a subject, find a situation that depicts that subject, watch it unfold, and let the people concerned tell the story."
How did you get started writing and photographing children's books? And books for teens?
Early in my career I photographed the children's book, The Story of Nim, The Chimpanzee Who Learned Language. Then I photographed three "high-low" stories. I loved illustrating those books and hoped to do more. Before becoming a children's author, I was a free-lance photographer working for various newspapers and magazines. Since there were so many photographers knocking on art directors' doors, I tried a different approach: I suggested stories that I would photograph and write. Since that time I've pretty much continue the "two for one" tradition. There's one exception – Dance, which I co-authored with Bill T. Jones.
Another exception is taking place right now. I'm currently illustrating a poem by Marilyn Nelson called Beautiful Ballerina. The words are determined by the poet and the photography is determined by the photographer.
In my own books Susan-cum-author often challenges Susan-cum-illustrator, and visa versa. The books for young children are usually photography driven and the YAs are word driven. But even then, there's a lot of back and forth, depending on the book.
In your own words, "Many of my books for young people are photo essays. The text is from the point of view of the people I interview. It's their thoughts, not mine; their opinions, not mine. I transcribe their words and shape them into a book." Why is this your preferred method of writing books?
I don't think much about various methods of writing. I write. The result comes from someplace who-knows-where. That's pretty much what most writers and artists do. They simply do!
In college and graduate school I majored in theater arts. I learned how to interpret a play's characters. Method acting was the rage. We were trained to become the character, live the character. Does that early training enter into my work? Maybe. Possibly.
It seems to me that a writer has to use whatever [limited] tools she has. She can't use someone else's style or methods. That's part of the very personal art known as "creativity." I can't write like Virginia Wolfe – wish I could. Or, J.K. Rowling – wouldn't that be something. A writer can only bring to the table her gifts, limitations, and background. I'd be curious to know how other authors feel about this.
There's a part II to this: if there is one word to describe what led me to the way I work it would be curiosity! I'm curious about people, what they think, what they feel, what they experience. It's been a dream come true to meet many interesting people from so many diverse backgrounds. My books take me on a magical journey to physical, intellectual, spiritual, and emotional places where I've not been before.
In your I.N.K. post , you write, "I find it fascinating to interview an individual and then write personal accounts from my subject's point of view. From these accounts, along with additional background material, I try to shape a coherent story." Do you ever worry about introducing your own biases to a subject as you "shape" things, or do you feel that some sort of bias is inherent (inevitable?) regardless of what form the narrative takes (personal accounts vs. the more traditional, detached recounting of events)?
This is a great question and I'm not sure that I can answer it without bias. When I do an interview I try to get into the person's skin, into their bones. [There goes method acting again.] Since my goal is to understand a specific individual, I do not contradict the person's point of view. It's about them, not me. It is not my job to judge. It is not my responsibility to disagree with their views. That means, in effect, I'm off the hook. Usually, my subjects read their profiles before the book goes to copyediting. They are asked to check it for errors only, not content. I may have an incorrect date or a misspelled name because I'm the world's worst speller. No one has ever gone totally revisionist on me. Ever! Perhaps that says something about a person's need to be understood for whom they are, warts and all.
Judgment is left to the readers, if they so choose.
The bias probably comes from my choice of subject matter. I choose such issues as prejudice, human rights, pregnant teenagers, and so forth. These are subjects that concern me. On one hand, once the subject is chosen I try to not let my bias govern the content of the book. On the other hand, not all my books try to look at a subject from all points of view. For example, I didn't give human rights violators a voice or, more recently, those who favor capital punishment. Perhaps that's where my bias comes in overtly.
You also mention that some of your books tackle what could be considered "edgy" subjects, like suicide and, at the time the Fighting Back was published, AIDS. How do you find people who would be interesting for children and teens to read about and get them to agree to open up and talk—for publication?
Finding participants is all about networking – somebody who knows somebody who knows somebody. Six degrees of separation? You bet! We're all connected in one way or another.
Before I begin an interview, I spend time with the person. [The exception is No Choirboy because I had limited access to the prisons.] We get to know one another.
Sometimes I work through organizations. For example, in Fighting Back, I teamed up with a "buddy" group through the Gay Men's Health Clinic. "Buddies" are people who help others who are living with AIDS. They take them to the doctor, go shopping, and even do light house work. Mostly, though, they are a pal to a person in need. I was invited to sit in at monthly meetings when the buddies discussed the needs and problems of their "clients." At that point whatever I heard or witnessed was off the record. Then, after I got to know everyone, and they trusted me, some of the buddies asked their clients if they wanted to be included in the book. About 85% said yes.
My general rule is not to push anyone. If a person wants to participate in my book, that's great. If someone does not, I respect their wishes and move on. Most people want to participate.
Since participation is totally voluntary, and since everyone knows EXACTLY what they are getting into, I rarely have a problem. The people in my books have something to say, something they want others to know. And what they say is pretty interesting.
Michael Angorolla, a person who was living with AIDS in Fighting Back, is a great example. It surprised me how upbeat he was, even when he was very, very sick. We'd have "NO AIDS DAY" when we simply hung out and did zany things together. Michael taught me more about living than anyone I have ever met.
How do you choose your topics? How much research do you do?
An idea can pop up anywhere, anytime. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night – actually 4 AM is my witching hour – with my head spinning with a new idea. Sometimes an idea evolves from a conversation, a book, a poem, a painting, or a news item. Dinner with my husband or a juicy gossip session with friends can bring about a new subject.
After I finish I book, though, I'm convinced that I'll never have a good idea again. I think I'm going through that now.
My books are nonfiction so research is fundamental. How much? That depends on the complexity of the book. There is no set time period. I spent at least a year-and-a-half learning about capital punishment and juvenile justice law before I could begin asking probing questions. For my children's photo essay about families [Families], I simply called a friend who teaches at my local elementary school and we were off and running.
Does your approach to writing/interviewing and photography change depending on if the audience will be children or teens?
No. I don't believe in "dumbing down" information. As a child I resented people who were in my face, talking down to me like I was some idiot who didn't understand anything so I'm certainly not going to do that now that I write for kids.
I used the same tone and conversational questioning when I interviewed children for my book, Families, as I did with the inmates in No Choirboy. In the end, it's the subject matter and the participants who determine the age level. I can't quite see three-year-olds reading No Choirboy. Then again, twenty-somethings aren't going to cuddle up with All Aboard: A True Train Story.
Moving on to your newest book, No Choirboy, you spent four years working on it. Is this the longest you've worked on a book, and was it also the most challenging?
No Choirboy was definitely the longest and the most challenging project I've ever worked on. First, I had to learn the law before I could do anything. That took time. I sat in on a seminar called "Capital Defender and Federal Habeas Clinic," given by Professor Ursula Bentele at Brooklyn Law School. It was way over my head. I realized I knew nothing so I audited an introduction to capital punishment law called "Capital Punishment Law and Litigation," given by Bryan Stevenson at NYU Law School. Man, did I study!
Once I was somewhat more knowledgeable, I began to meet lawyers who are involved in capital punishment and juvenile justice law and the book began to take shape. That process, which is only mentioned in the book, took about a year-and-a-half.
Oddly, finding the people was less difficult than one might think. Their lawyers helped me. The most challenging part was how to properly portray the inmates who had been involved in horrible, brutal crimes. It was important for me to reveal their humanity but not romanticize them. That was a challenge. It is up to the reader to decide if I accomplished this task.
The second challenge was what to put in and what to leave out. The subject is huge. I had to figure out a way to narrow the subject so that it would be accessible to readers. The first draft was somewhat like the finished book, with the focus on the people. Then, the nonfiction in my editor and me took over. I started writing additional material about the laws, the US Constitution, the history of capital punishment, DNA. It went on and on. The second draft of the book was about 200 – 300 pages longer than the finished manuscript. But all this "back matter," as we called it, overwhelmed the heart of the book. So I took a deep, deep breath and dropped it. Months and months of work! That was painful. I'm putting some of that information on my website.
The most difficult thing to give up was a chapter about a man who had been exonerated. Since he was obviously not a teenager, my editor said that his chapter stuck out "like a sore thumb." We went round and round about it. I tried cutting the chapter to make it shorter. I tried bringing in his teenage granddaughters. I tried adding his section to the last chapter, the lawyer's chapter. Dropping this section was painful. In the long run I think my editor was right. Someday I'd like to publish it.
When you began No Choirboy, Roper v. Simmons had not yet been decided. What kind of impact did the decision [which "ruled that the death penalty for those who had committed their crimes at under 18 years of age was cruel and unusual punishment and hence barred by the Constitution."] have on the direction of the book, if any?
While working on No Choirboy seventy-two men [no women] who were convicted of a crime when they were teenagers were on death row. Then the law changed. That meant the book had to change. I had also interviewed an inmate who had been fourteen when he was convicted of murder. He was not eligible for the death penalty. Again, the book's theme changed.
I think these changes made the book stronger. The theme of the book changed from teenagers on death row to the continuing cycle of violence. The emphasis shifted from the law to the ugliness and beauty in human nature.
How did you select the men and families profiled in No Choirboy?
Usually I spend time with the people who participate in my books. It was not possible to do that for No Choirboy because I had limited access to the prisons. But I trusted the lawyers. They understood that I was looking for articulate, introspective inmates who were willing to share their experiences with readers.
Bryan Stevenson, a leading lawyer in capital punishment law, was a big help. He put me in touch with two of the three inmates who are profiled in the book. He also told me about "Murder Victims' Families Against the Death Penalty." I looked them up on the Internet and called one of the board members. That's how I found the brother and sister who talked about their lives after the murder of their older brother. The networking continued.
The director of Texas Defender Service suggested the third inmate who was still on death row when I interviewed him, and the family whose son had been executed.
The last chapter in the book is about Bryan Stevenson because I thought he would be a good role model for my readers. He is proof that one person can make a difference.
What are you working on next?
This question brings me full circle to your first question since this is the first time in many years that I'm illustrating another writer's work. Marilyn Nelson wrote a magnificent poem called Beautiful Ballerina. When I first read it, I had goose bumps.
One of my passions is exploring ways to portray movement in a static medium – photography. Dance, a life-long passion, is a cool way to do this.
Arthur Mitchell is a world famous dancer and founder of The Dance Theatre of Harlem. His neoclassical dance company and school combine the disciplines of classical ballet with a dash of sass. I thought that his ballet school would be a perfect fit for Marilyn's poem.
Three elements had to be present for the project to work. One, Marilyn's words needed to be clearly interpreted. Two, Arthur Mitchell's style and vision needed to be represented. And, three, the photographs needed to reflect my appreciation of form and movement.
After watching many classes in action, I chose four students – ages three, nine, thirteen, and seventeen – to participate in the shoot. Then, Endalyn Taylor, the director of DTH's school, and I worked with the dancers to "choreograph" the poem. It was a wonderful collaboration. In the end, I think it all came together very nicely. Next year, when the book is published, I hope you'll agree.
Thank you, Susan, for taking the time to answer my questions!
This is the first day of this year's Winter Blog Blast Tour. Today's other WBBT interviews are:
Lewis Buzbee at Chasing Ray
Louis Sachar at A Fuse #8 Production
Laurel Snyder at Miss Erin
Courtney Summers at Bildungsroman
Elizabeth Wein at Finding Wonderland
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Are you excited about next year's YALSA award for nonfiction? I really, really am.
Here are two books that got YALSA recognition last year (first up an Alex Winner, followed by a Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers)
In 1984, Peter Feldstein set out to photograph all 676 residents of his town, Oxford, IA. In 2005-2007, he tracked down as many as he could and photographed them again, this time bringing along Stephen Bloom to talk to them about their lives.
This book is full of their portraits side by side. The little kids are now grown up with their own little kids. Some haven't changed at all. Some have passed on and some have moved away. Many have the same last names. The text, brief paragraphs about their lives offers us a glimpse not only into their lives, but the town as a whole and how it fits together.
Really amazing stuff. See some of the pictures here.
The photographs of town, especially, made me cry. I know that Iowa fall and winter landscape and I really, really missed it.
No Choirboy: Murder, Violence, and Teenagers on Death Row Susan Kuklin
This is kids, talking about themselves--talking about life on Death Row and how they got there. Damn is it bleak.
What I liked about it is that Kuklin also talked to the families and how having a member on Death Row affects them. I especially appreciated the final two chapters, one was a man talking about his brother, who was killed by the State. The other was two siblings, talking about their brother, who was murdered one night at work and the work their father does to end the death penalty.
Many of the people in this book share a lawyer, which might skew things a bit. BUT this is a chilling portrait of what prison is and how messed up our justice system is.
Round up is over at the ACPL Mock Sibert blog!
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In keeping with this month's theme – using our books in the classroom – I'd like to share experiences about talking up/talking down to kids in publishing and the classroom.
When the question of age appropriateness arose on our new Web site, http://www.inkthinktank.com/, I wish I had listed a broader age range. Some of you already have and hats of to ya! Material that is strong and fun and well presented is manna from heaven to a creative teacher. Kids, young and old, are savvy creatures who can handle big vocabulary and big ideas.
Step back: For years I've been trying to capture the voices of the participants who rule my subjects. Early on, in a book for young children called When I See My Doctor, I included the words "stethoscope," "otoscope," "sphygmomanometer," and "hemoglobinmeter." The copy editor wanted these words deleted because they were too difficult for kindergarten-age children. But four-year-old Thomas, the subject of the book, learned them from his doctor and shouted them proudly into my tape recorder.
It was a bit nerve wracking to argue with an editor because I was new to the field, didn't have kids, and never studied early childhood education. But I trusted Thomas, my subject. Later, at school visits, children called out the words, teachers beamed, and I felt vindicated. Sophisticated language, one teacher said, encouraged the children to be students.
Jump to now: A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of doing a presentation with Marilyn Nelson, the poet whose picture book I recently illustrated. I had invited her to watch me shoot her book, using students from the Dance Theatre of Harlem as my models, but scheduling didn't quite work out. Now that the book is published, we were asked to appear together in front of a large group of students. I was anxious. How would a classroom filled with both boys and girls react to my gals in tutus? What helped the most was the teacher. She greeted me with an enthusiastic bear hug and a huge – I mean huge – smile. That alleviated trepidations until I saw the kids. The first to arrive were the boys – big, boisterous boys who spread out in the front rows. Gulp! This is a book about ballerinas for goodness sake! Too late now to back out. Besides Marilyn had just arrived looking fabulous. There were more hugs as Marilyn whispered, "How shall we do this?" If she didn't know we were in deep do-do land.
"You go first."
"No, you go first."
"No, you go first."
Marilyn, the AUTHOR, went first. She described how and why she wrote the poem and revealed a few literary secrets, such as a riff on Yeats. ["Beautiful ballerina, you are the dance."] She read her poem to a rapt audience and talked a little more.
My turn! Following Marilyn Nelson may have been a mistake. But I have a few secrets of my own, ones that surprisingly complimented her poetic structure. Showing photographs, I pointed out my secrets, historic balletic points of reference. There's an homage to Swan Lake, to Degas, and to George Balanchine.
[The photograph above is a typical Balanchine shape.] There were no giggles, squirms or snickers from the audience. Instead, there were great questions and a very happy teacher. Oh, did I tell you who made up the audience for our picture book? Students at the University of Connecticut.
What experiences have you had, dear teachers, librarians, and colleagues, breaking the "age appropriate" barrier?
Jete' to future: The next visit will be with third graders. I will not change one word in my presentation.
Blog: I.N.K.: Interesting Non fiction for Kids (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Loreen Leedy is one of over 50 authors that will appear at the University of Central Florida's inaugural Book Festival on Saturday, April 17 on the UCF campus. She will participate in the Adventures in Children's Books author panel at 10:30 am and will sign books immediately afterwards. For more information, please visit this web site:
Rosalyn Schanzer, Dorothy Hinshaw Patent and Vicki Cobb are launching the videoconferencing division of INK Think Tank (INK Link: Authors on Call) with a webinar on April 21. This highly-entertaining free webinar for professional development for teachers is being Spotlighted by CILC.org, one of the most prominent marketplaces for videoconferencing in the educational arena. The title of the webinar is "Award-Winning Nonfiction Authors in Your Classroom." http://cilc.org/c/community/spotlights.aspx
Deborah Heiligman will be on a panel at the Los Angeles Festival of Books on Saturday, April 24, at 10:30: Fact vs. Fiction: Storytelling in Young Adult Nonfiction with Elizabeth Partridge and Stephanie Hemphill, moderated by Jonathan Hunt.
She will also be speaking about Charles and Emma at the Santa Monica Library on Sunday, April 25, at 3:00 with a reading by Rosalyn Landor, who performed the audio book.
From Susan Kuklin: I'm participating in PEN's World Voices Festival of International Literature this year. The festival runs from April 26 – May 2. Here is the blurb about the panel I will be moderating.
War and the Novel
When: Saturday, May 1
Where: Scandinavia House, 58 Park Avenue, New York City
What time: 12:30–2 p.m.
With Bernardo Atxaga, Filip Florian, Assaf Gavron, and Atiq Rahimi; moderated by Susan Kuklin
Free and open to the public. No reservations.
Cheryl Harness signs copies of her book, They're Off! at the Pony Express Museum in St. Joseph, MO,
on Saturday, April 3, 2010, 150th anniversary of the launching of the Pony Express. Wahoo!
From David Schwartz: Where Else In the Wild? More Camouflaged Creatures Concealed and Revealed (the sequel to Where In the Wild? Camouflaged Creatures Concealed and Revealed) has been published and has received the following "awards":
Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) Choices 2010
National Science Foundation Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12
and is already about to come out in Korean...
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Recent blogs about the author's process have been personally helpful and reaffirming, so I'd like to continue the discussion by writing about the author's pre-process – ways to uncover the perfect, albeit illusive, idea. Even more to the point, how does the author deal with that period of time just before the kernel of an idea breaks out? Hint: space.
Consider this: The last book has just gone through its final edit and it is out of your hands. The baby is on its own, to sink or swim, to sing or clunk. What's next? Everyone and their mothers-in-law seem to ask the big question: "So, what are you doing next?" Gulp! Next? Is there a next? How often does this happen to you?
If you are lucky a new and exciting project awaits. But that's not always the case. And it's one thing to have a next project, and another to have a next project that is desirable. For example, when I finish a demanding human rights topic for young adults, I like to follow it with a colorful photo essay for very young children. Professionally, it gives me a sense of balance and breathing space. It acknowledges both the joys and the sorrows nonfiction undertakes as we realistically depict the world around us.
But there are times when I've experienced the absolute reality that I have no new ideas. There will never, ever be an idea as interesting, fun, saleable as my last book! "So what are you working on now?" That phrase haunts my waking hours. It creeps into dreams. It's the 500 pound gorilla in the room – along with how old are you? and how much money do you make? – asked during school visits. Nothing. Nada. No idea. Try saying this at a party. It's a great way to drink alone.
Over the years I've developed a few tricks – do's and don'ts – to get me over the no-idea hump. Here are but a few. Please feel free to add, subtract, or challenge this list.
Don't devote entire days to household projects. It only keeps you from thinking about writing. You can clean closets anytime, even when on a deadline. Don't try to make every recipe in the Barefoot Contessa's latest cookbook. Again, it takes away from literary thinking and you will gain about eight pounds. Trust me, I know this. If you don't heed my advice on this one, change the quantity of butter to olive oil.
Don't take on your craziest family members' problems and try to reform them. It will only lead to a fight and won't change anything. You will still have no new ideas – that are legal or printable. Don't go shopping. It's depressing to see all the beautiful things you can't afford because you have no new ideas to help pay for them. On second thought, maybe this should go into the "do" section as it reaffirms that you will have a new idea eventually, hopefully before the bills arrive. You're on your own with this one. Don't indulge the notion that you will never have a new idea for more than 72 hours. After that, it gets old and boring to those near and dear. Of all the don'ts, if you can handle the time frame of the last don't, feel free to indulge in the other four, but try to keep it down to as few hours as possible.
All these "don'ts" are getting me down. Let's move on to …
Isabel Allende, in a Q & A about writing, said, "Few people know how to be still and find a quiet place inside themselves …. From that place of silence and stillness the creative forces emerge; there we find faith, hope, strength, and wisdom." I couldn't agree more.
Give yourself the gift of silence. Let silence, like the pause between musical movements or the white spaces around Asian poetry and art, give your creative juices time to recoup. Visit someplace beautiful: spend time with a favorite painting in a museum, walk along the river, look up at a big sky. The ocean and a white sandy beach work best for me, but that's not a
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[Before taking on this subject, I'd like to thank Barbara Kerley. Her September 9 blog, "An Old Dog, A New Trick," was the push I needed to go to the bright side, to go Mac.]
I recently participated at a media specialist conference in Florida, where I heard a number of interesting presentations by our fiction writing colleagues. Gayle Forman when she writes she hears the voices of her characters. We nonfiction authors do that, too, of course, but there's an additional step. First, we must search out real characters, alive or dead, and then find ways to integrate them into our heads. At least that's my process. Nonfiction writers' search for characters is indeed a long, twisty road.
This subject led me to the master of all character searches, Luigi Pirandello, who I assume reads INK somewhere in the Italian grand beyond.
I ask him: Caro Senore Pirandello. Per favore. Your Six Characters in Search of an Author is great theater, but how about some help for us nonfiction writers? After all, we share much in common. Just as your characters take control of your play, people represented in nonfiction literature usually take control of the books right from the start. Primary sources are our bread and butter. For this writer, my primary sources, my people, ARE the book.
The way I work is somewhat logical and somewhat not. Before I meet anyone, I need to understand my subject – just enough to be able to ask decent questions – but not so much as to enable preconceived ideas to drive the book. That's the characters' domain. Meanwhile the networking in search of said characters begins.
To network, timidity has no place in the lexicon of nonfiction. We must be tough, just like your pushy six characters, Senore. I'll call anyone I know who might know someone who might know someone. Emails go out to suggested organizations, and to the friends of friends of friends. Fingers crossed, I await the responses. In the best of all worlds, doors fly open, private intimate materials are gingerly handed over, and the most fascinating, introspective, articulate people whoever walked the planet start talking. Oh-oh, now I'm verging into fiction. Truth-be-told, this doesn't happen quite so quickly, but hey, this is a blog, and our readers are busy people.
While the hopefully discovered most fascinating person talks, I tape, listen, and watch. Does she lean to the left? To the right? Does his upper lip curl when revealing an inner truth? Is she a blinker? When does he laugh nervously? Also: Am I pushing too hard? Not enough? Asking the right follow ups? This is a balancing act whose high wire is based on trust. It's extraordinarily exhilarating – when it works.
Up to this point, the interviewees are people, not characters who will take over the book. To become characters, they have to go through me. First, all the tapes, every last word, need to be personally transcribed. While pushing rewind, again and again, their voices slowly begin to creep into my being. Suddenly, their speech patterns become my speech patterns, their body language and movement slowly becomes mine. They attach themselves to my bones and seep into my blood. I literally need to know how it feels to be ze [him or her]. I know, I know, this is more than a little weird, but the creative process is usually weird. [Just watch the anomalous routines baseball players go through at bat.]
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As a big birthday fast approaches, the gulf between young peoples' experiences and mine has widened considerably. And yet I continue to write for kids. I went from teaching high school English to photojournalism to writing and photographing children's books. Through the years my students' dialogue about the great themes in literature, poetry, art – ergo life – lived inside my heart and echoed in my ears. My young cousins were often about, arguing over who would recite their latest poem first, practically jumping over one another to talk about some crazy adventure. Those reverberations were a vital part of my work. The students are long grown up, and my cousins are adults with adult dispositions. Have the voices of our current generation changed? Are their issues different from mine? I think they probably are. But I'm not sure.
I dodge the "voice" problem somewhat by writing from the perspective of the person I'm interviewing. It's not in my voice but the young person's voice. But my books are not 100% participants' voices. Some parts, like choosing the subject, is me, and that's what I question. So the choice of narrative and presentation begs the questions to us all, "Are we still asking interesting, relevant questions? Are we still cool?"
A perk writing for children is that we are generous with one another. I asked a few experienced writers and illustrators to contribute their thoughts to this subject. I made it a point not to ask INK contributors because I hope you will add your thoughts in the comment section.
The first person to respond was Andrea Davis Pinkney. She said, "We all know the cliché that says, 'real life is stranger than fiction.' Well – when writing for children 'real' can also be funny, ironic, sad, thought provoking, and cool. This is why I write non-fiction and historical fiction for children. 'Real' can let a child see the world in a whole new way. 'Real' can change a young reader's thinking about people, history, scientific facts, love, laws, wars, protests, rites of passage, family. 'Real' can show kids what's real about themselves."


text:
Kashmir is personification of the great Indian indicision .. our inability to act quick and act decisive. We have let the situation spiral out of control since 1990's and this Kashmir like situation could very well happen with any other state if not dealt. You can see signs of regional chauvinism in maharashtra, TN already had it, you can see the Gujjars protesting violently for reservations and the government looking clueless.
I sometimes tend to agree with Mr.Murthy that IAS should be scrapped. The politicians are anyways useless.. and it will take a revolution of sorts to change the way we do politics in this country but atleast we could change the way our managers.. the bureaucrats... are selected and groomed.
Kashmir, today, needs a fresh page to analyse. The old horses can no longer run the show. We have to start treating this as our own state rather than a territory under possession and use non lethal force, allow greater inter mingling of populations and capital flows.
We need a new begining.
I dont think India could afford or would attempt to provide an independent status to Kashmir but there are several milestones to be achieved within the Indian constitution that we need to deliver upon. And not just limited to one set of the Kashmir population, you cannot forget the displaced Pandits.
A FEW years ago a senior Indian official, well-placed to know and shape the government's policy on Kashmir, sketched for me an optimistic scenario for a future settlement there. Politics in the state, he said, would be dominated by four up-and-coming young leaders.
Two—Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti—were already in the "mainstream"—that is, they belonged to parties that accepted the Indian constitution and contested elections. Two—Umar Farooq and Sajjad Lone—were separatists, whose parties rejected the constitution and boycotted elections. But they were moderates, who had taken part in dialogue with India. It was not a stretch to imagine they could be drawn into the mainstream.
It is interesting to reflect on what has become of this cheery vision. Mr Abdullah, the third generation of his family to play a leading role in Kashmiri politics, is indeed chief minister, after his party won elections in 2008. But he has had a bad few months, seeming unable to cope with the wave of protests afflicting the Kashmir valley, with no strategy other than to beg the central government for more troops. When someone threw a shoe at him in at an Independence Day parade on August 15th, many seemed sorry he missed his target.
Ms Mehbooba, whose father, Mufti Mohammed Sayeed was chief minister from 2002-05, is now leading the state opposition, and is among Mr Abdullah's fiercest critics, accusing him of "wanting Kashmiris to taste humiliation and defeat". Some of her language recalls that of the separatists, but she says she remains an Indian nationalist, wanting Kashmir to enjoy autonomy, not independence. She admits that, like all the other political leaders, she has lost credibility because of the failure to produce real change.
Umar Farooq, the Mirwaiz, or hereditary spiritual leader of the Kashmir valley's Sunni Muslims, is an angry man these days. I visited him in his house, which always resembles a fortified prison (his father, also a moderate, was killed for that reason, and the Mirwaiz has long been at risk himself). The house is now in fact a jail. The Mirwaiz has been detained there for two months, presumably to stop him leading large demonstrations. He thinks the protests might die down after the celebration of Eid at the end of Ramadan. But it would only be a temporary respite: "We don't want peace; we want a solution."
Sajjad Lone, son of another murdered moderate, is not under house arrest. He is a frequent guest on Indian television. This irritates many of his thousands of "friends" on Facebook, some of whom already saw him as a traitor for having stood, unsuccessfully, in a parliamentary election last year. He says that after reading the abuse on Facebook, he checks the profiles of his critics. "They like Bryan Adams, Maradona and stone-pelters," he says, referring to the young firebrands at the forefront of the protests.
Like Ms Mehbooba and the Mirwaiz, he takes the youthful protests as in part a rebuke to himself and other political leaders. India was very good at sowing dissension among the separatists (who were pretty good at it themselves to start with). The failure of the moderates to win what their critics saw as real concessions from Delhi has undermined their credibility. Hardliners, notably Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who refused to join "unconditional" talks with India, have been "vindicated", says the Mirwaiz.
Two other moderate separatists, Shabbir Shah and Yasin Malik, have also been locked up. Mr Malik, once a charismatic leader of the armed insurrection, gave up the gun in 1994, but was never trusted enough by India to make that unnamed official's wish-list of future leaders. He was freed from jail this week, in ill health.
One effect of the current crisis is to push the moderates closer to the hardliners. The mainstream politicians, too, find themselves under growing pressure to show which side they are on. That leaves the sickly, elderly frame of Mr Geelani—principled, dogmatic and unyielding—calling many of the shots. It is hard not to see this as a failure of Indian policy: at every stage they have undermined the credibility and standing of the very moderates it would have been in India's interests to help.
Not that Mr Geelani's policy shows much sign of success. More than 60 protesters have been killed, and all that has been achieved is a heightened awareness of Kashmiri frustrations. So it is also hard not to agree with Mr Lone: "We know how to render sacrifices. But somewhere down the line it becomes the end, not the means."

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Thread: Public Safety Boycot?
- Join Date
- Oct 2008
- Location
- idaho falls
- Posts
- 52
Public Safety Boycot?
I recently took the public safety test. Before and after testing Ive heard alot of people think it was a bogus test. That the questions were unfair. I thought it was probably because of low scores that they felt that way. After taking the test I received a substantially lower score than other tests. I felt like the test seemed easy until I got to the 50 question personality portion which I thought the questions were pretty vague and unfair. I can see why some people feel the way they feel I dont know what others scores were. I also felt like the staff at public safety were unfriendly and rude. I,m just curious what others thoughts were. I dont think boycotting is a choice for me If you want the job you have to take the test. The only way to improve is by studying and taking it so Boycotting doesnt seem like an option. I would like to know what others opinion is.
- Join Date
- Feb 2008
- Posts
- 13
The test is really easy until the personality, then it is just answering the questions the way they are looking for. Also be aware that they do change the way they score them every now and then. I know this because I was at a test when they got up front and said "I know some of you guys think you can outsmart the test, well not anymore. We have just changed the way we do things" luckly they changed things for the better concerning my score as I got hired off that list. I have since heard that they have changed it again.
Good luck and keep on testing.
- Join Date
- Jan 2007
- Location
- Green Bay
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- 1,031
Welcome to the world of the psychological test, after all, that is basically the personality portion. The test basically will determine honesty because you get asked similar questions worded differently with such choices as agree, disagree, stronly agree, strongly disagree, or neutral. Usually that portion is timed so you don't have time to go back over your answers.
I personally believe such tests are bogus, because they are open to interpretation. Those who administer such tests will strongly disagree with me. My reason is because some questions are like "I like to analyze data", one could put disagree as an answer and then 70 questions later you get a question like "I use data analysis often" etc. Point is you can't quantify your answers, while analyzing data may be a part of one's job, it doesn't mean they have to like it. These tests are about consistency, best thing is to answer with either "Agree" or "Disagree", avoid the "Strongly" choices.
As for boycotting a test, that does nothing when looking for a job, other people will still take the jobs.The thoughts and opinions posted here are mine and mine alone and do not reflect the thoughts and or views of city or dept affiliation.
- Join Date
- Oct 2008
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- idaho falls
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strongly agree that test sucked
I know it has been said a 1000 times but my opinion may not be there opinion. It all depends on the test writer. But a question like I feel safe. Well Im living in a small town. You might live in a large town with a big crime rate. What kind of question is that anyway (wasnt on my test but just an example) The questions were all like that. Another question Ive notice after posting this some people say they scored alot higher never answering strongly agree/disagree. I only answered strongly. I got a 67 which 1/3 of the test is the personality portion so Im wondering if thats how I failed 1/3 of the test. Is this how this is graded? I will just give it another try and be as honest as I can on vague questions and not put Strongly and see if the results are different. I wish there was a way to Boycot public safety but I want the job.
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- Jan 2007
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- Green Bay
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Really what is boycotting going to do? Nothing, except give you a chance to vent, it won't solve the issue at hand. The personality test is a psych test and many depts are going to this more and more. I don't agree with them and I think they are a sham, but it is another hurdle to get the job. The tests really aren't graded on a right or wrong system, but by consistency. The questions asked are asked again in a different wording, so it is a matter of answering consistently. Answering either agree or disagree is easier than using "strongly". Typically with such tests if you fail this portion you fail the whole test, the way I read your post is you still passed the test, just not as high of score, be happy for that. I have taken a dept test twice where it was the same test, I failed the first time because of the personality test and passed the second time, just keep testing instead of dwelling on boycotting.The thoughts and opinions posted here are mine and mine alone and do not reflect the thoughts and or views of city or dept affiliation.
- Join Date
- Feb 2006
- Posts
- 42
As much as I dislike PST, I don't think you really have any other choice but than to take their tests. I have a hard time understanding how someone who bases their whole business model on testing candidates can be so bad at it (unorganized, unfriendly, bad information, can't tell you who is actually hiring off the list, etc). One thing I did when I took their test was I called every department that used PST and asked if they had current plans to hire off the list. I only selected that ones that said yes or ones that I really really wanted to work for to reduce cost. In the end I always knew that my scores weren't that good through PST but I still played the game because a certain part of getting hired is just playing the odds - nothing ventured nothing gained. After you get hired and get some experience, if you think you can do better than starting your own service would be a great sidejob Just take the tests, do your best, and focus your energy on more productive things - doing well on non PST tests, practicing oral boards, etc.
Good luck.
- Join Date
- Dec 2007
- Posts
- 22
Ive been watching random threads on this very subject with Public Safety. I took that test for the first time last June and came out thinking that I did average. As it turned out, I did pretty darn well. Better than I usually7 do. I cant say for certain, but I have been around the testing cycles now but for some reason I think that very part of the test made up for some short falls I might have such as Math. As I write this I know have a few interviews coming down the pipe so I feel pretty lucky. I dont know if there is any kind of trick to that part of the test but I decided to answer those questions with the idea one of my hunting buddies was asking them. I tried not to out think this test as I have in the past and tried to answer it like I really wood. Not what I think they really wanted.
However, with that said I would like to join you in the venting process. I took this video test for the first time today in Seattle and now I feel the same as you. I would like to boycott that thing. I thought that was really lame but what can I do. Regardless, we got to keep plugging away if we want it and cant allow ourselves to get tripped up. Remember that phrase? Keep your eye on the ball With that said, this is a good place to vent and your thread let me vent for my test earlier today To that, I say thanks and good luck.
- Join Date
- Aug 2002
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- San Francisco Bay Area
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Written Test Psych Questions
"Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not after you."
If you haven't already figured it out yet, there are psych questions being placed in the entry level written or FireTeam Video testing http://eatstress.com/fireteamvideo.htm
Why? To eliminate candidates early in the process instead of investing time and money getting candidates through all the stages of the hiring process and have them fail the psych evaluation (up to 40% fail the psych) at the end as part of the medical.
This process has truly changed he face of the fire service. The red hots, the backbone of the fire service have a difficult time just getting out of the blocks and over the hurdle on the written like those above have expressed.
We believe you should be prepared for each step of the hiring process before you show up. Are you prepared? Many aren't. Don McNea Fire School www.fireprep.com is a company that is at the cutting edge of providing candidates with study information to get over this hurdle.
We know several candidates who have obtained their home study program. One candidate said if he hadn't prepared in advance for the psych questions on the LA County test he would have failed. He passed. His buddies didn't.
Here's a testimony off the Fireprep.com web site from a candidate who benefited from the Don McNea Fire School:
I am sending this e-mail to say Thank You for helping me with the psych portion of the written exam. I took a test without knowing your info. and scored in the low 70's. About 3 weeks ago I took that same test and scored a 94% and will be continuing in the process. That following week I took the same exam at my home department and though I do not know my score i have been invited to continue in their process as well.
I honestly believe that without knowing the information that you gave me and talking to you on the phone I would not be continuing in the process anywhere. I believe in what you have done for me and therefore I have recommended your material and website to many of the candidates that I have talked to in the past few weeks. I cannot say it enough but THANK YOU! Larry
Nothing counts til you have the badge . . . Nothing!!!
"Captain Bob" www.eatstress.com
The problem here is that "50 questions do not a psychological test make" if I may be allowed some poetic license. Psychological tests like the MMPI are made up of HUNDREDS of questions, as in 300 to 500. I've taken those and guess what? I'm not crazy! Or so those tests say. The facts are:
1-PST is using this as a selling point to HR departments ("hey we can insure you get candidates with the right psychological makeup")
2-Boycott is useless, there will always be eager people who want that job and you and everyone who boycotts will just make it easier for them to get hired.
3-By selling lists of candidates Fire departments and the HR/civil service departments they work through avoid complaints, test challenges, etc. If a municipality runs a test then you could go to local government (town meeting, city council, legislature, etc) and file a complain with a chance to be heard. Want to challenge PST? hire a lawyer. Anybody got $200 an hour for a lawyer? I don't. Departments have replaced the cost and pain of running a test with just a cost. They like that.
4-Enough qualified people will get hired through PST. The fire departments that use them are probably in HEAVEN. Pay a set fee and get a list of names when ever you want. They will not see a downside.
I am not happy with PST or the other "human relations" based tests (the ergometrics video test). I was able to score 100% on PST last year, but I still think they are bogus. First went the competitively scored physical agility test, now the written test are based on something other than reality. It's really sad.
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- Oct 2008
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- idaho falls
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Not Boycotting
I have never thought it was a good idea to boycot this test. Ive just noticed that at tests when you talk to other candidates they say they have boycotted this test. I dont know why. yeah its B.S. to pay to take a test travel there and find out that the test is B.S. but with the practice from it and going through the hoops its worth it. Im all for eveyone else Boycotting the test that just means less competition. So more power to them I just am wondering if they are all talk or if people are boycotting public safety. I do think there are more people discouraged and do not take Public
Safety because of the personality portion. If cities are looking for people who want to work for them. I think they should consider finding a new testing company. However they probably have a large eligibilty list. I would think If I was paying for someone to condut a test I would go in and at least say I would like to see some changes because of people getting discouraged. Im wondering If a city would pass me off as a whiner because I didnt score as high as the next guy If I wrote a letter. I do know what the test is all about and I am pretty confident I can score higher next time or maybe even a few times. I am also wondering if 50 out 150 questions are personality does this acout for 1/3 of your score. It makes sense but WOW.
- Join Date
- Dec 2007
- Location
- Oregon
- Posts
- 217
If you boycott this test, you certainly aren't going to be able to apply to any department who uses them...
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- Jan 2002
- Location
- Cleveland, Ohio
- Posts
- 412
In the past, this test consultant had given scores of 98-100% to candidates who answered either Strongly Agree or Strongly Disagree. However, from recent examinations across the country, it appears that they have changed the format for scoring. The individuals who are scoring 98-100% are now answering Agree or Disagree.
We recommend that you never, ever answer Not Sure. This gives the appearance of waivering, being wishy-washy and being unsure of your decisions
Personality traits of a successful firefighter that these types of exams are looking for.
Maintains effective and pleasant working relationships with superiors and peers. This is a must!
Gets along well with others in a working relationship. Remember that firefighters work a 24-hour shift. You arent going home after a normal 8-hour workday like most Americans do; you are spending an entire 24 hours with other firefighters. You are expected to be able to get along in this atmosphere. Getting along is crucial to working side-by-side at an emergency scene. You must be able to trust and depend on each other. This is one of the key personality characteristics that they are trying to find in a successful candidate. Can you get along? Can you work together with others in a continuous 24-hour period?
Is flexible, not rigid, in thinking. Its not my way or the highway. Firefighting is a team effort, not an individual effort. You must know that suggestions and recommendations are going to be made as a team; whatever is best for the team is what the final decision will be.
Is a self-motivated individual. Firefighters are people who get things done. They dont wait around to be told what to do; they take action.
Is decisive. Firefighters are not wishy-washy or maybe-sort of in their personality traits. They have to make a decision and stick with it. Sometimes decisions dont work out as planned, but it is a decision based on experience and the situation that is confronting you.
Has empathy and is supportive of others in time of need. The definition of empathy is being able to put yourself in someone elses shoes to feel what they are feeling. Are you the type of person that can do that? Or are you the type of person who closes yourself in and cant imagine what the other person is experiencing. Firefighters respond to emergency scenes where people are in need. You need to be empathetic to better serve others. This is an important personality trait and is one that is critical on these examinations.
Is able to control and keep emotions on an even keel. Firefighters do not get high anxiety or stressed in emergency situations. They need to stay calm and controlled to make the appropriate decisions.
Has a pleasant, good sense of humor. Firefighters are easy to get along with their coworkers; they have a good sense of humor; they are not thin-skinned; they can take comments from coworkers and the public without feeling offended.
Is willing to accept constructive criticism from others. Remember that firefighting is a paramilitary organization. You will take criticism from your superiors; you must accept it, find out how you can improve, and move on.
Knows that there is a chain of command and that following established department procedures is important in an organization. Again, firefighting is a paramilitary organization. You report to your lieutenant, captain or battalion chief. You dont step out of rank over your officer to go to their superior. There is a chain of command and you must follow it.
Is willing to work as a team member. This personality characteristic is one of the most important ones that will determine whether or not you can be a successful firefighter. Firefighting is a team effort. Its not about individual accomplishments or what did I do; its what the team did. This is what its all about. You need to be able to work as a team. You must accept the teams decisions, even if you feel that your opinion in the decision is the best one. If the team determines another decision, then you must follow and support the teams decision.
Has a positive and enthusiastic attitude. Firefighters are optimistic and believe that the outcome of a situation will be positive.
Honesty. Firefighters are by nature very honest and trustworthy individuals. Citizens need to feel comfortable around firefighters and not feel suspicious of their motives.
Shows initiative. Firefighters take initiative. They dont lay back to find out what can be done; they take action when it is needed.
Innovativeness. Firefighters come up with ideas and suggestions for the betterment of the team.
Uses judgment and common sense. Firefighters dont just shoot from the hip. They use common sense and judgment for the best outcome at an emergency scene.
Has a positive attitude and believes that a successful outcome will occur in emergency situations. Firefighters are optimistic individuals, not pessimists. They believe that emergency situations will have the best outcome for those they are treating and always display that positive attitude on the scene.
Has strong values and ethics. Firefighters are honest, trustworthy, dependable, and moral. They dont try and find the angle that is best for them; they are people that can be depended upon.
Good organizational skills. Firefighters are well organized. Good organizational skills are needed at the fire house and on emergency scenes.
Dependable. Firefighters are the type of people that you can count on. They are on time and are there when you need them.
Able to speak clearly and audibly. Firefighters need to be understood by the public; they dont speak too fast, they have an even tone and are able to be well understood.
Ability to follow oral directions. Firefighters are the type of people who can follow oral directions from their superiors and other firefighters.
Ability to follow written directions. Firefighters must be able to understand their Standard Operating Procedures and their department rules and regulations. They must be able to understand written instructions on how equipment works and is employed at the scene.
Is able to handle stress and stay calm in emergency situations. Again, firefighters dont show high anxiety, stress or nervousness they remain calm so that everyone else in an emergency situation can also remain calm.
Works with little or no supervision. There are times on an emergency scene when you are given an order and you must complete that order by yourself. You have to be able to know what you are doing and accomplish the task.
Is able to take charge when the situation demands it. Firefighters are take-charge kind of people. They dont sit back; they show initiative to get things accomplished.
Under emergency conditions, can handle critical decision-making. Many times at an emergency scene, critical decisions must be made. Firefighters must be able to make these decisions. They must trust their instinct and experience and have the most optimistic attitude towards a positive outcome.
Under emergency conditions is able to perform both repetitive and complex tasks with little or no supervision. Firefighters often perform the same repetitive duties at the firehouse and at an emergency scene. They must be able to perform these tasks without direction. Firefighters take initiative to learn how the equipment is used properly and how to maintain it.
Is able to treat the severely injured and sick. In todays environment, 70% of what firefighters due on the job is related to the medical field whether it is a heart attack, shortness of breath, diabetic emergency, etc.
Is able to accomplish duties in tight time frames. Many times at the fire scene and at the firehouse, duties must be completed in a short time frame. Firefighters must be able to handle deadlines and accomplish the task successfully.
Does high quality work and makes suggestions to improve how things are done. Firefighters make suggestions so that they can improve the nature of their work and be able to accomplish tasks on the emergency scene in a well organized manner to provide the best service possible to the public.
Realizes that safety is a top priority. Firefighters realize that many times they must put themselves in harms way to save another person. On the fireground, firefighters are always keeping keen attention and detail to the safety of themselves, other firefighters on the scene, and any civilians.
Has the sincere desire to serve the community and help people. This is what firefighting is about. You are in a job to serve other people. People whose houses are on fire, or have been in an accident or have a medical emergency, and/or catastrophic situations you must be the type of person who has a sincere desire to step up to the plate and be willing to put your life on the line to serve people you dont even know.
Willing to accept people as they are without regard to race, creed, or gender. Firefighters treat people equally. They must treat those living in a $20,000 home the same as those living in a $400,000 home. It doesnt matter what color, religion or sex someone is firefighters look at the person as a person. They dont stereotype people and truly believe that all people are created equal.
Can render emergency care to anyone regardless of who they are, where they are and what their beliefs are. Firefighters cannot be biased towards anyone; they show everyone the same respect whether an individual is on welfare or is a millionaire. They do not care what the religious or social views are of those they serve.
Understands that there are cultural differences and does not stereotype individuals. Firefighters know that there are many different cultures in our country. They cannot stereotype cultures whether good or bad they treat everyone fairly.
Able to treat all people with dignity and respect. Again, firefighters do not care what your social, religious, and/or economic values are they treat everyone with the same respect.
Willingness to continue learning new things. Firefighters are always in continuing education. They need to find out what the newest medical procedures are or the latest innovations on the fire scene.
Fireprep.com has over 250 pages of FREE information and career articles to help you reach your goal of becoming a firefighter.
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Oh Public Safety UGGG
You have mentioned the same problems with public safety that I noticed when I tested. BUT I certainly wasn't going to boycott a potential job opportunity. I have heard from several area depts. that they are thinking of going away from the PS test because they haven't updated the test, in years. Every year is basically the same test with a few variations. That is why the best candidates now are doing what I did to get hired. Take the test as often as you can to figure out the test. You will begin to see patterns and better understand what you are not good at. For me it was math. Then I practiced my math daily and retook it again and again. It finally paid off, but I understand the frustration I paid probably $1000 overall to PS. A good tip I saw earlier on this forum was mentioning that PS will not even research whether or not a dept. is actually hiring. They want you to add as many depts. to your list so they can make more money off of you, while in actuality the dept. may not even be taking apps. Do your due diligence and get online or call each dept. to see if they are actually taking apps before you add them to your PS list. GOOD LUCK
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I would like to know what the ratio between anonymous and registered (logged in) users is for stackoverflow.com?
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Meta Stack Exchange is where users like you discuss bugs, features, and support issues that affect the software powering all 143 Stack Exchange communities.
From what I remember hearing on the podcast, well over 90% of the traffic on SO is from anonymous users; however, I could be wrong :) |


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Thermogravimetric investigations on A(H2O)6BX6 complexes and the formation of ABX6 and ABO3 structures
Heilbron, M.A. and Gellings, P.J. (1976) Thermogravimetric investigations on A(H2O)6BX6 complexes and the formation of ABX6 and ABO3 structures. Thermochimica Acta, 17 (1). pp. 97-105. ISSN 0040-6031
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Abstract: | Thermogravimetry (TG) of A(H2O)6BX6 complexes are presented, with A = Cd2+, Co2+, Cu2+, Fe2+, Mg2+, Mn2+, Ni2+, Pb2+, Zn2+, B=Si4+, Sn4+, Ti4+, Zr4+, and X=Cl−, F−. On a selected number of complexes, differential thermal analyses (DTA) and differential scanning calorimetric measurements (DSC) have been performed. It was found possible to synthesize most complexes including Cd(H2O)6TiF6 as single crystals. The hexafluoride and the titanate compounds are formed from the corresponding cadmium hexaquo—hexafluoride complex. The cadmium titanate could be made either in the ilmenite or in the perovskite structure. The decomposition programs for the preparation of NiTiO3 and CdTiO3 are presented.
The hexaquo—hexahalide complexes, in general, show one of two decomposition types. The intermediate product in one type is the metal(II) fluoride AX2 and in the other the mixed hexahalide compounds ABX6. Which type of decomposition occurs depends on the anion BX2−6. |
Item Type: | Article |
Copyright: | © 1976 Elsevier Science |
Research Group: | |
Link to this item: | http://purl.utwente.nl/publications/68352 |
Official URL: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0040-6031(76)80047-0 |
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